An accredited college in the United States meets a certain list of criteria published by various private, nonprofit agencies. The government does not provide accreditation on its own, unlike in many other countries. State governments can choose which colleges may open within their borders, but just because a college operates doesn't mean it's accredited, and certainly doesn't mean it's endorsed by the state government. However, federal and state governments do consider accreditation to represent a high standard of academic quality and training, and rely on accreditation to establish the quality of a given college and its programs.
The nonprofit agencies grant one of four types of accreditation to a college that applies: regional, national faith-related, national-career related and programmatic. Regional accreditation typically represents most private and public universities. Colleges apply for national faith-related accreditation when they possess a religious affiliation and have a doctrine-centered curriculum. National career-related accreditation often applies to career-based, for-profit colleges and may or may not result in a degree. Programmatic accreditation will apply to particular programs and professions, including law, medicine and other advanced health degrees.
Nationally accredited schools, despite the name, are not determined by location. They typically operate for profit, and often run technical or vocational programs. Most of these colleges offer degree programs that differ from typical academic programs found within regionally accredited schools, whether by centering on career-specific knowledge or by structuring a course around a religious faith. National accreditation still requires stringent criteria for approval, despite being different from regional or programmatic accreditation.
Nationally accredited colleges often have very low tuition rates compared to traditional universities, which will help a student save money. Often, many employers of fields associated with nationally accredited college programs won't question the name of the college on a resume, nor will they argue about its accreditation type. If issues arise, the U.S. Department of Education provides an informational Web page on types of accreditation to explain that both regional and national accreditation have official status.
Because the structure of classes and the style of teaching differ, many students with credits from nationally accredited colleges may have difficulty transferring those credits into a regionally accredited school. Potentially, this may mean a student has to start over from the beginning of college if he transfers. If a student wishes to enter graduate school, his bachelor's degree from a nationally accredited college may not allow him to enter the program, since classes will not transfer.